The Raven Report: 01 JUN 23
On Tactics with CPT K. Pfeifle
The Army defines tactics as the employment, ordered arrangement, and directed actions of forces in relation to each other (FM 3-0). The definition is comprehendible, but I find it lacking and redundant. For instance, is there a distinguishable difference between “employment” and “directed actions”? Is there a discernable difference between “ordered arrangement” and “forces in relation to each other?”
Second, it doesn’t give the audience any indication of what “tactics” are FOR or the desired effects. Lastly, the definition is devoid of purpose by excluding a relationship to an objective, enemy, or result. This then devolves into men and equipment just moseying about without purpose, the last thing any tactical leader wants. These deficiencies are overcome by rewording the Army’s definition, adding the effects, and providing purpose.
Therefore, for the sake of this discussion, we will define tactics as the application of combat power to achieve a tactical task and bring about a desired end state.
Now that we have defined WHAT it is, we can begin to discuss HOW to employ tactics effectively. Sun Tzu provides the essence of what all good tacticians should focus on when planning and executing operations. “Steadily develop indirect tactics, either by pounding the enemy’s flanks or falling on his rear.” (The Art of War, Sun Tzu)
This single sentence of guidance from one of, if not the oldest, volumes of military doctrine ever written gives us the standard. Far from the entire volume, this statement bears the full weight of maxims with numerous historical examples of applicability and speaks the loudest. Four of the five forms of maneuver manifest here. Envelopment, infiltration, penetration, and turning movement, can be applied at all tactical echelons as well as provide the ingredients that form the foundation of our battle drills one through five.
Too simple or too basic? I would submit that it is right and key to call it basic. By keeping the tactical plan basic or simple, we mitigate the battlefield effects of fear, fog, friction, and fatigue.
Take the example of the phalanx; opposing forces of the day would form up in giant squares and smash into each other—the weight of the man behind pressing those in front forward. The outcome of these battles was more often determined by the side that had more men. Therefore they overwhelmed the foe by sheer mass.
Yet, during the heyday of the phalanx, Epaminondas “pounded the enemy flank” to defeat the Spartans while outnumbered by as many as 4000 troops. To get after the Spartan’s right flank, he stacked the left side of his phalanx 50 ranks deep, as opposed to the standard of 8-12. This simple reordering of the ranks was revolutionary and inspired tacticians for centuries, notably Hannibal at Cannae. (Legion vs. Phalanx: The Epic Struggle for Infantry Supremacy in the Ancient World, Myke Cole).
The illustration Epaminondas provides a great example of the use of “mass” but also introduces us to the key element “fix” that facilitates the “pounding of the enemy’s flank or falling on his rear.” Myke Cole notes the “thin line” on the Epaminondas’ right fixed the enemy long enough to allow the left to overwhelm and expose the Spartan right flank, leading to a total route of the enemy.” The thinned-out right was made of sufficient numbers and arranged to provide enough time for the left to gain the position of advantage on the Spartans’ flank. The fixing element held the enemy long enough for the maneuver element to gain the leverage needed to exploit the flank or rear area. By echeloning the formation, the right flank (the thinned-out part of the line) never fully engaged before the left flank’s success. This also displays how mass provides momentum and tempo to the attack and, conversely, prevented the fixing element from being overrun by the opposition.
The days have past that called for charging shoulder to shoulder with spears and shields. Given 21st-century weapons and technology, we need to think about Mass a bit differently. “Mass” amounts to far more than just the number of Soldiers with their individually assigned weapons. Understanding battlefield effects allows for the proper application of mass. For instance, 100 M4s firing at a tank is technically massed direct fire but not much more than a waste of ammunition. Rather, the principle to bring forward here is the physical presence of the massed spears and shields on the enemy’s flank (the critical vulnerability of the Phalanx) ensured victory for the out-numbered Epaminondas. Today, we don’t need to have thousands of Soldiers on the enemy’s flank. Just a squad with a couple of Javelins can neutralize or destroy an entire platoon of tanks. This example provides a solid foundation for the application of combat power.
The basics are timeless. T massed fires against the opposition’s flank or rear are the platinum standard no matter the era; the tactician must arrange the forces on hand to fix the opposition and provide an element with enough mass, firepower, and speed to maneuver to a position of advantage and pound the enemy flank or rear. Mattis says we must “be brilliant in the basics.” Therefore, focus on the fundamentals: find the flanks! Infiltrate, penetrate, or envelop to fall on the enemy’s rear.
Book of the Week
R.D. Hooker’s anthology of maneuver warfare thought should be on every officer’s shelf.
From the back:
The history of failure in war can…be summed up in two words: too late.” --General Douglas MacArthur In this book, veteran author Colonel Robert Leonhard argues that time is the primary dimension in war and that to win, the warrior must fight by minutes. From his experience as an infantry officer and war planner, Leonhard lays out the important time dimensions of warfighting: duration, frequency, sequence, and opportunity. He shows how the great captains of history turned the enemy’s time flanks, preempted defenses, or manipulated the frequency of operations to their advantage. Leonhard likewise dissects the phenomenon of surprise in war, explaining how combat forces delay detection and hasten contact to overturn the enemy’s perception of the fight. He shows how nations and armed forces can create revolutionary new ways to fight by altering the time factors that bound the violence of war.
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